Forsaken Shadow
by YokaiKittens
Summary: After narrowly escaping the clutches of a dark creature, Telltale is struggling to maintain her sanity and dignity, stumbling back to the well known city of Saint's Haven. Weakened by her wounds, she collapses on the Black Mountain Path only to be taken in by a man shrouded in darkness and mystery...who cannot stand the very thought of her existence.


**_Hello. There's just something you need to know about the story before you read, so there aren't too many spoilers. This is set after the war with the black dragon at level 30-35, and after Gerrant's death. _**

**_I hope you enjoy this. :)_**

_No…stop. Stop!_

Telltale's breath came in rasps as she stumbled away from the Forsaken Village, slipping through the ruin of a lost town. The air was moist and hot, making her skin damp and dripping onto her fatal wounds. It stung unimaginably, but she couldn't stop. If she did, it would be the end.

_She could not stop now._

She heard a shrill cry, and panic gripped her firmly, and for a moment her legs locked. She fell forward, face down into the moist earth. She could feel the wind of the creature swoop above her, but not reaching her. She had dodged him for now.

Coughing up dirt, she sat up and saw the mass of darkness waver unsettlingly for a few moments, clearly confused of not catching its prey. Its back toward her, she realized this was her only chance to get its sights off her. Telltale, failing to be stealthy in any way, scrambled backwards and turned to find a quick hiding place. In front of her was a large tree, a gaping hole in the trunk. Maybe if she pushed herself far into the back it, it wouldn't see her.

She didn't have time to think. Telltale quickly crawled into it, and turned to see the creature turn and drift towards her. She clutched her bow tightly, knowing it didn't bring any pain to the creature, but it gave her a reassurance.

_What was a monster with no weakness?_

Telltale had seen many horrific things in her day. Many things of which she would fail to describe in detail, but nothing was as horrible and grotesque as this thing. It was a floating mass of darkness, brimming with unbelievable power and magical energy. Wherever it went, it left behind not the scent of decay, as many creatures in the Forsaken Village did, but the smell of fresh, coppery blood. So much of it, in fact, that it was almost intoxicating.

But Telltale had spent a lot of time in the Forsaken Village. She knew the creatures here, not personally, but she knew every weakness and every strength. And suddenly, a new creature appeared, clearly matching the power of a dragon. Maybe.

She had never been so badly injured before, except when maybe the dark elf queen, Elena, had that huge troll step on her. That hurt _a lot. _But this was different. Though she never actually saw it lash out, whenever it got near, she would hear a strange sound, almost like a blade but different, and then all of a sudden her flesh opened up, her blood spraying onto the ground. She could feel a searing pain that all of a sudden became ten times worse when she moved. Almost like a poison.

The creature drifted around a moment, then made another strange hissing noise. It drifted upward until it was out of sight. All was quiet.

Telltale allowed herself to pant heavily, her breathe shaky. She twitched her elfish ears, trying to hear the now familiar hiss. When it didn't come to her, she crawled out of her hiding place. She stood on her wobbly knees. She didn't even want to look at herself right now. Silver hair, coming out of the ribbon that held it all up at the back of her head, dirt and grime in it, and of course her bloody, dirty, and ripped clothing. She didn't dare ask herself if this could get worse, because she knew with absolute certainty that it would.

With every passing moment, she could feel her strength leaving her. Every step made her feel as if there was an ogre adding to her weight. She had to get back to Saint's Haven. Kelly would probably patch her up, or Ishillen, her trainer in archery. Whoever she got to first. Besides, Kelly was the only reason she had been there in the first place. Looking for romance stories for her to tell her. What better place than an abandoned village? Plenty of love there.

After a while, she could see bright light, filtering through the trees. The air was warm, but cool breezes swept over her. She could see Saint's Haven from here. She could almost hear the buzzing of people in the town. She felt a smile graze her face—she had made it. Just a little farther—

Telltale's breathing hitched in her throat. She found herself unable to breath, she couldn't even wheeze. She held her stomach, where a large wound bled, and suddenly the pain was unbearable. But she couldn't scream, because her lungs wouldn't fill with air. She collapsed on the ground, flipped herself onto her back so as not to lay on her open wound. Her vision was bloodshot now, hazy and blurry.

And then she saw him—at least, she assumed it was a him. A figure clothed in black. She knew automatically that he was not there to save her.

The figure loomed over her, and Telltale made a wimpish sound, the only sound she could manage. It was a sort of whimper, but shakily drawn out as if it had almost been a word.

And then everything went gray.

* * *

**_I hope you enjoy this! I fell in love with the game and had to write a fanfiction of it! Please comment if you enjoyed it. _**


End file.
